Leonard paget



(No Model.)

L. PAGET.

PRODUCTION OF ZINC CHLORIDE, 6:0.

No. 393,578. Patented Nov. 27, 1888.

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351 M (I-Noumea a w UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LEONARD PAGET, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO THE MAGRAEON STORAGE BATTERY COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

PRODUCTION OF ZINC CHLORIDE, &.o.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 393,578, dated November 27,1888.

Application filed November 3, 1858. Serial NQQHLSUQ.

To all whom it may concern:

ie it known that I, LEONARD PAGET, a citizen of theUnitcd States, residing at New York, county of New York, and State of New York, have invented a new and useful improvement in connection with the art of generating electricity, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in the art of generating electricity by voltaio means; and its object is to cheapen the production thereof. Laccomplish this object by the pro cesscs hereinafter described of creating valuable by-products, which by-products may be placed upon the market and sold as merchantable articles.

Prior to my invention it was old to attempt the reduction of the cost of generating elcc tricity in a voltaic battery by causing such battery to produce a merchantable article known as zinc oxide. I assume that at tempts in this direction have been more or less successful; but I will point out that I have found, as I believe, that the cost of consump tion of zinc in comparison with the cost of the oxidizing or other hydrogen-destroying chemical agent consumed in destroying the hydrogen formed on the negative plate of the voltaic combination is small. Seeking to reduce the cost ofthe hydrogen-combining agent, I have discovered that itis possible to do so by obtaining a valuable product during the production of such agent, as well as to much increase the electrical power developed by the voltaic combination by employing such agent nascent or as freshly produced. Further, I have found that it is possible to effect still greater reduction of the cost by so arranging that in the production of the agent aforesaid a chemical compound, (a+c,) should be acted upon by another, (b,) to produce the said agent (0) and a compound, (a+b,) when if a-l-b is more valuable commercially than a-i-c then the agent 0 is produced at a profit which can be charged against the debit of other losses in the production of electricity. If, also, the metallic salt or oxide produced by the consumption of the electro-positive electrode is commercially available, either at a profit or at. par, the resulting production of electricity is effected at a minimum cost.

In a. certain sense this might be considered as an (No model.)

extension of the principle of the Danicll cell, in which the copper reduced by the hydrogen evolved at the negative plate may be considered avaluable product; but this is not at all the essence of my invention, nor does the prac tical result available with such a cell admit of comparison with my invention, partly for the reason that the production of. the valuable material copper is carried on in the cell in such a way as to need the ultimate removal of the negative electrode, and partly because the deposit of copper upon the zinc and other reactions well known to electro-chemists present almost insurmountable practical difiiculties, which my invention wholly avoids.

To carry my invention into effect, I employ several variations of procedure embodying the principle; but that which I deem the best I now immediately describe.

The drawing illustrates such apparatus as may be found in any well-equipped chemical laborator I the same bcin ada itcd to earr d a a y out the processes hereinafter described and claimed. This apparatus, however, constitutes no part of the present invention, it being lim ited to such processes per se.

The apparatus consists of a gas-generator, B, and a voltaic cell, C, hermetically closed, except where it is connectedto the gas-generator by a pipe, G. The gasgencrator B is connected by a pipe, E, with a chamber or vessel, A, containing sulphuric acid.

D is a vessel, also connected with the gasgenerator chamber B, and adapted to contain bleaching-powder.

H H H are cooks for connecting the several vessels.

F is an outlet adapted for the removal of such matter as remains in the bottom of the chamber B after the gas has been generated. The battery-cell O has the usual positive and negative plates. The lower end, M, of the gas-conveying pipe G extends up between these positive and negative plates of the battery into the electrolyte \V.

The operation is as follows: The cock H having been turned so as to admit a suflieient quantity of bleaching-powder into the chamher 13, the cock H is then turned so as to permit sulphuric acid to flow drop by drop upon said bleachi ngpowder, and chlorine gas is thereby evolved in a well-known manner in the chamber 13-,according to the following formula: CaOOll-H,SO,:CaSO,=HOlO-|-HOl, and l'lClO-l-HOl -HQCL. The resulting sulphate of lime, being precipitated as a line powder, can be treated-for the separation of any iron it may .contain and sold as precipitated sulphate, or it may be burned at a low tcmperatu re to produce the finest Iariau plaster, and is in either case a product more valuable than the material employed. The chlorine gas evolved is conducted to the voltaic cclli O by a pipe, G, where it is led into the water \V, containing carbonate of lime in suspension, this water being the electrolytic fluid. The electrodes of the vol taic cell are an electropositivc zincoriron plaieor mass and an elect ro-ncgative plate or mass of lead coated or containing lead peroxide or. a lead salt. lly the action of the hypochlorous acid (pro duced by the chlorine under the ,inliuc'nce ol" the carbonate of lime suspended in the water) the lead salt or plate is per-oxidized, or the peroxide, when reduced by the hydrogen evolved, is immediately again raised to the higher degree of oxidation. Zinc is dissolved and is found as zinc chloride. Iron is dissolved and isiound as ferric chloride. Both the zinc and iron salts are easily salable as valuable by products. This combination gives, with zinc, a very high elect-r0 motive forceabout 2.3 voltsand is very constant. l'ly immersing the zinc in a solution of caustic soda contained in a porous cell immersed in the water, as described, there is formed in the porous cell a zincate of soda, (from which pure oxide of zinc can be precipitated by the addition of water,)-and in the surrounding liquid sodium hypochlorite. The electro motive forceof this combination is about 2.7 volts. One cell will charge a storage battery or accumulator.

The method I adopt in practice for obtaining when required finely-divided carbonate of lime in suspension inth'e water is to inject a current of carbonic-acid gasinto the water containing a salt of lime or milk of lime. The

internal resistance of this combination is at first high, but rapidly decreases. By causing a circulation ofwater in proportion to the formation of zinc chloride, so as to maintain a uniform solution, this voltaic combination will give an electric current for a time limited only by the supply of chlorine gas and the mass of elcctro-positive electrode.

- S bleaching-powder, in which case, sulphurcted Bromine water may be substituted for the hydrogen being substituted for the sulphuric acid, hydrobromic acid gas is set free in the generator with a deposit of fine sulphur. In this case water slightly acidulated with sulphuric acid is substituted for the lime-water in the voltaic cell, and here the lead being not per-oxidized by the hydrobromic acid, carbon or platinum plates must be substituted. The resulting bromide of zinc or iron is a valuable product. The electro-motive force of this combination is not so high (about 1.25 volt) as with the former, and thc-electro-positivc metal is attacked on open circuit. It is prefcrable to arrange the voltaie cell without an exit tube for gas, so that the pressure devel oped while the cell is on open circuit may be used to' operate in the generator to prevent the generation of gas in the way well known in chemical operations. \Vhen the cell is on c osed circuit, the'gases are absorbed, and as absorbed they may be made to be generated by so arranging that the release of baekpress urc allows of the inflow-of active material. as is well known in chemical laboratories. The cell in this manner becomes automatic.

Ilaving thusdcscribcd my invention. What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent oi the United States, is-

1. The within dcscribed process of prod ucing valuable by-products in a voltaic combination in which elcctro-motive force is set up, which consists, first, in generating a gas, as chlorine, and at the same time producing a by-product, as sulphate of lime, by the union of bleachiug powder and sulphuric acid, and then injecting the gas thus generated into an electrolyte composed of water holding calcium carbonate in suspension, said electrolytic compound bcing in contact with the electrodes of said voltaic combination, and finally, through the action of said gas upon this electrolytic compound and the disintegrated salt of the active electrode, producing a second by-product, as zinc chloride, substantially as described.

2. The within-described process of producing a valuable by-product in a voltaic combination in which electrical potential exists during the progress ofsaid process, which consists, first, in generating a gas, as chlorine, and then producing sulphate of lime, then causing the chlorine gas thus produced to unite with the metallic salt of the active electrode and carbonate of lime suspended in the water of the electrolyte of the combination, whereby such valuable by-produet as zinc chloride is produced, substantially as described.

3. The within-described process of produc ing a valuable by-product in a voltaic combination, which consists in causing a gas, as chlorine, to unite with the disintegrated salt of the active electrode of the volt-aic combination, thereby producing a by-prodnct, as zinc chloride, substantially as described.

4. The within-described process of producing a valuable by-product, as zinc-chloride, in a voltaic combination in which electrical potential exists, which consists in causing a gas, as chlorine, to unite with the disintegrated salt of the active electrode surrounded. by an electrolyte of water holding carbonate of lime in suspension, substantially as described.

, LEONARD PAGET.

Witnesses: I

O. J. KIn'rNEn, J F. QUINN.

ICC 

